Dart Hill Park

Dart Hill Park / Pleasantview Marsh Trail

Vernon Town Park and Hockanum River Trail

16 acres in Vernon, CT

Parking:

• North End: Two medium lots near 680 Dart Hill Rd, Vernon, CT
• South End: Small lot near 27 Pleasant View Dr, Vernon, CT

Trail Map          Trails: 1.5 miles      Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Dart Hill Park has several of the standard town park offerings, stone dust walking path, picnic tables and gazebo, kid’s playscape, and fitness trail.  It is bordered by a tiny stream and the Hockanum River and hosts a section of the Hockanum River Trail.

Hiking

Starting from Dart Hill Park you cross the entrance bridge and turn left to head towards the woods.  This is the start of the 1.2 mile Stone Dust Path.  Just a short ways into the woods the path  has access to the first section of the Hockanum River Trail.  Taking the left fork will take you north to Dart Hill Road for a short road walk to the Dart Hill North section of the trail.  Taking the right fork brings you briefly over to the river before bringing you back to the stone dust path.

The rest of the trail continues in this fashion.  Wide easy walking stone dust path with occasional bump out sections for the River Trail.  Some of the bump outs are a bit overgrown or flooded but generally passable.

The trail then crosses Hockanum Boulevard at the edge of the Sona Industrial Park for a wide grassy avenue that is well maintained by the Mansions at Hockanum Crossing.  The views are more less woodsy trail and more townhouse and warehouse but at least I didn’t feel like I was encroaching on anyone’s space.  The path is mostly crushed stone with a few paved sections and was a pretty boring walk.  There was a nice view of a breached dam and a couple history placards to learn about the area.

At the end of the stone dust path the trail crosses the Hockanum River to enter the Pleasant View Marsh boardwalk trail.  The trail is an incredible set of boardwalks that travel 0.3 miles to Pleasant View Drive.

History:

Links:

• CTMQ – Hockanum River Trail 18&19: Dart Hill SE & SW (2017)
• CTMQ – Hockanum River Trail 24: Pleasantview Marsh (2020)

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Last updated August 28th, 2023